Locations for Fionn mac Cumhaill

For a core narrative that some people reckon at almost a thousand years old, the Fenian Cycle is remarkably consistent with respect to some of the key locations mentioned in the narratives.

The original stories of Fionn mac Cumhaill are actually believed to originate from Leinster, hence the accumulation of story locations to the east. As the character’s popularity increased however, professional storytellers from other parts of the country started to adapt the stories to include nearby features for the local audience. That’s why, today, you’ll struggle to find anywhere in Ireland that doesn’t have at least some kind of reference to Fionn or the Fianna.

The twelfth century Macgnímartha Finn(The Boyhood Tales of Fionn) on which I based the Fionn mac Cumhaill Series, retains those very strong links to Leinster and, hence most of the action in the novels take place there. I’ve had two or three people ask for a map to give some idea of the key locations from the Fenian Cycle to provide some kind of sense of where the various incidents take place. These are as follows:

Fiodh Gaibhle (Feegalva in County Monaghan): In the Fenian Cycle narrative, this is where the warrior Fiacail mac Codhna rescues the young Fionn from the “craftsmen” mentioned in the Macgnímartha Finn(the Brotherhood of Gifted Ones in Traitor of Dún Baoiscne). I never actually mention the name of the site in the book as the setting’s always struck me as a bit too far north to fit logically with the mythological narrrative. The name Fiodh Gaibhle actually means “Gabul’s Wood” but I don’t think anyone knows who Gabul was.

Ráth Bládhma: As a child, Fionn (or Demne, as he was originally known) was reared by two female guardians (Bodhmhall and The Grey One) in the forests of Sliabh Bládhma (Sliabh Bloom in County Laois). This isolated spot was the most apt area of wilderness contiguous to the areas in Leinster which would have been most populated back in the Iron Age. It would have been a logical place to set someone who’s on the run or in hiding.

Seiscenn Uairbhaoil: This Leinster marsh (where the warrior Fiacail mac Codhna was said to be based) is believed to be located in present day County Wicklow. It’s placement on the map is an estimate on my part.

Almhu: This was the site where Tadg mac Nuadat was originally said to live. According to one or two references, the fortress was painted with alum (Almhu) from whence it gets its name. This was also the childhood home of Muirne Múncháem (Fionn’s mother).

Dún Baoiscne – This is the one site in the Fionn mac Cumhaill series which is pure fabrication on my part. For the purposes of the series, I needed Clann Baoiscne to have a tribal territory based around a fortress which I arbitrarily named Dún Baoiscne (the fortress of Clann Baoiscne). To be fair, if there had been a Clann Baoiscne and they had a fortress, this is probably what it would have been called.

[Note: I’d like to thank Agnes Conway Davey for assistance with the map image ]